Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations

Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller announces that the average increase sought by plans on the Obamacare marketplaces in Pennsylvania is 8.8 percent but that could go up to 36 percent if the Trump administration fails to continue to enforce the health law's individual mandate or pay subsidies to insurers for low-income customers. Insurers in other states are also weighing how events in Washington will affect their rates.

Bloomberg:
Obamacare Is Stabilizing In Pennsylvania, Unless GOP Disrupts It
Prices for Obamacare health plans are stabilizing in Pennsylvania and will continue to unless the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress take action that would hurt the program, the state’s insurance regulator said. After a jump of more than 30 percent this year, insurers are raising their rates 8.8 percent on average in the Affordable Care Act’s individual insurance market for 2018, the Pennsylvania Insurance Department said. All five insurers that sold plans this year will again offer health insurance next year in the market, which covers about 500,000 people in the state, according a department statement. (Tracer, 6/1)

The Philadelphia Inquirer/Philly.com:
Pa. Insurance Dept. Previews Affordable Care Act Rates
Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller said Thursday that five health insurers submitted rate requests with average statewide increases of 8.8 percent for the individual market and 6.6 percent for small-group plans, but warned that the rates could skyrocket if Congress and the Trump administration make significant changes to the Affordable Care Act. ... At this point, all 67 Pennsylvania counties will have at least one insurer selling plans on the ACA exchange, making them eligible for subsidies. About 16 or 17 counties, including the five-county Southeastern Pennsylvania, are expected to have just one company on the exchange. (Brubaker, 6/1)

The Hill:
Pennsylvania Sounds The Alarm About ObamaCare Payments To Insurers
Pennsylvania could see double-digit rate increases next year if Congress and the Trump administration don't fund key ObamaCare payments to insurers, a state official said Thursday. Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller said the state's five insurers plan to stay in the market in and have filed aggregate rate increases of 8.8 percent for 2018. But those rates could jump 36 percent if Congress or the Trump administration disrupts the insurance markets. (Hellmann, 6/1)

CQ Roll Call:
Insurers Seek Increases For Obamacare Premiums In Early Filings
Insurance companies in about half a dozen states have filed for premium increases ranging from 6 percent to 58 percent for 2018, citing rising medical costs and taxes as well as uncertainty surrounding the new Trump administration's implementation of the health care law. The increases would only affect plans sold on the marketplaces established by the 2010 law (PL 111-148, PL 111-152). They are still preliminary. Federal and state insurance review rate requests throughout the summer and fall and often negotiate different increases — sometimes lower, sometimes higher. (Mershon, 6/1)

The Cleveland Plain Dealer:
Health Insurance Companies Guessing At 2018 Prices, As Trump Sows Uncertainty
As Congress struggles to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, a different, far less visible problem is playing out in state capitals and in health insurance offices across the country. ... Companies including Medical Mutual of Ohio, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, Akron-based Summa and Canton-based AultCare have no firm idea how much to charge -- and it's not because of the healthcare bill stirring up so much dust among the public. Rather, it's because of a political calculation by President Donald Trump over an arcane feature of the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare. (Koff, 6/1)

Houston Chronicle:
Insurance Rates For 2018 Going Up, Cloaked In Secrecy
The three insurers that offered plans on the Affordable Care Act's exchange in Houston last year appear to be returning in 2018, but only one was willing to reveal how much it could cost customers. Community Health Choice, a Houston area insurer, told the Chronicle on Wednesday it asked the federal government to approve a 16 percent average bump for eight plans. But the insurer added it might still need to ask for much more due to the current political upheaval surrounding health reform. As the deadline for filing rate increase requests came and went Thursday, the other two insurers were less forthcoming. (Deam, 6/1)

The Connecticut Mirror:
Connecticut Senate Takes Out Insurance Against ACA’s Repeal
The Connecticut Senate voted unanimously early Friday morning to essentially take out an insurance policy to protect women and children against the possibility President Donald Trump succeeds in repealing or significantly weakening the Affordable Care Act. The bill would mandate continued coverage for childhood immunizations, contraceptives and a wide range of services pertaining to women’s health. The measure now goes to the House of Representatives. (Pazniokas, 6/2)

The Minneapolis Star Tribune:
As Health Insurers Drop Out, Medica Gains Unwanted Monopolies
A Minnesota health plan finds itself as potentially the sole survivor in insurance markets in Iowa and Nebraska — a precarious position that highlights the uncertain fate of the federal health law. ... Having a monopoly might be enviable in some businesses, but not when it comes to selling individual market coverage under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Dwindling competition further complicates the decision facing Medica and other health plans in coming weeks about whether to stick with business on the ACA exchanges. (Snowbeck, 6/1)

And a change coming in Virginia —

Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Virginia's Insurance Commissioner Is Retiring
Virginia Insurance Commissioner Jacqueline K. Cunningham will retire at the end of the year after serving for a total of 30 years with the State Corporation Commission’s Bureau of Insurance. She was appointed by the commission to serve as Virginia’s 13th commissioner of insurance on Jan. 1, 2011. (6/1)

This is part of the KHN Morning Briefing, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.